Whistleblower on giant Man United deal 'cost marketer his job at GM'
Marketing chief Joel Ewanick was ousted from General Motors for not properly disclosing as much as a third of the cost of the Manchester United $559 million soccer deal, according to Bloomberg Business Week.
What price a shirt sponsor?
After a whistle-blower stepped forward, the car giant determined Ewanick was "spreading the price of the agreement among several different marketing budgets to avoid his boss's spending limits," said Bloomberg, quoting people familiar with the situation.
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When confronted, Mr. Ewanick denied it, they said.
Ewanick is said to have told GM that the structure of the Manchester United deal "wasn't out of ordinary for large contracts."
GM's investigators "saw it differently after days of probing inconsistencies in Mr. Ewanick's account," people said, according to Bloomberg.
There's no evidence that Mr. Ewanick profited personally from the transaction, said two of the people, while another said the investigation continues.
The departure of the former Hyundai and Nissan marketer is also a personal setback for CEO Dan Akerson, said the Bloomberg report. He supported Ewanick's risk-taking spirit to shake up GM's staid marketing culture, promoting him to run global marketing in December 2010.
Tom Henderson, a GM spokesman, declined to comment on the former marketing chief.
Ewanick's last GM deal will bring a total of $559 million through 2021 for Manchester United, the soccer team has said.
The largest deal in the history of soccer, was formally announcedon July 30, the day after GM said in an emailed statement that Ewanick failed to "meet the company's expectations of an employee."
Elements were renegotiated saving money after Ewanick's actions were uncovered, people familiar with those details told Bloomberg..
The agreement includes about $18.6 million this year and next before rising to about $70 million for the season beginning in 2014.
In 1999, when Manchester United won the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League, Sharp sponsored the team for only £850,000, said Nigel Currie, managing director of London-based marketing adviser BrandRapport UK.
The next year, Vodafone Group took over, paying an average of £8 million, which was considered "incredible," said Currie, who helped negotiate the deal as an adviser to Vodafone.
Insurance company American International Group took over in 2006 for about £14 million, and now pay 20 million pounds a year.
The GM deal will put Chevy on the team's jerseys beginning in 2014.